Rosters were announced yesterday for the 2010 MLB All Star game, which will be played on Tuesday, July 13th at Angels Stadium in Anahiem. And almost immediately afterward, countless stories hit the internet, print media and radio and TV airwaves about All-Star game "snubs" - players who deserved to be chosen, but for some reason were not.
To me, this is a pointless debate. In each league, probably close to a hundred players who are having great seasons, and clearly everyone can't be chosen. This year, comissioner Bud Selig and his special committee voted to expand the rosters to 34 players for each league, but still it's not enough.
Why all the "snubs"? Well first, the fans get to vote on the starters, and fans tend to vote with their hearts, not by stats. Although admittedly, the fans did a decent job this year. All of the all-star starters this year are at least worthy of being on the team. You could quibble with the fact that certain players are starting over others, but that would be a bit picky.
Second, the players get to vote on a set number of reserves. The players also play favorites, omitting players the don't care for personally. Last year, A.J. Pierzynski of the White Sox was famously kept of the AL roster (in favor of the Red Sox Jason Varitek) simply because he's widely hated throughout the league.
Third, the All-Star managers get to fill out the remainder of the rosters, with the ridiculous restriction of having to choose a player to represent every team, even if that team has no deserving all-stars (Michael Bourn of the Astros would be a good exaple this year). Plus, they have the pressure of appeasing the players on their own team, which leads them to choose their own players over more deserving players.
American League (and Yankees) manager Joe Girardi, for instance, chose Yankees third baseman Rodriguez this year for the team, who while having a decent season, clearly has no business being on the roster. But Girardi's playing by the rules here and taking care of his own guys. You can't really knock his choice. Knock Major League Baseball for giving him the power to make that choice. Similarly, NL All-Star manager (of the Phillies) chose Ryan Howard or more deserving candidates such as Joey Votto of the Reds.
Then of course, you've got managers choosing players for no apparent reason at all, such as Manuel's choice of the Braves utility man Omar Infante. That reduces this year's roster by yet another quality player, and creating an additional "snub".
So what should be done? This game is supposed to be for the fans, right? So let the fans vote on ALL the players, with no restrictions on what team the player is on, no input from players or managers, and no consideration for statistics. Fans tune in to see their favorite players, not to see no names like Arthur Rhodes and Trevor Cahill, no matter how great their stats are.
If the fans were in charge this year, we'd surely see Washington Nationals phenom Stephen Strasberg on the NL roster, and Pirates middle reliever Evan Meek off it. Sure, it may not be "fair" to all of the players who supposedly deserve a shot to be on the all-star team, and it will create dozens more snubs, but who cares? It certainly would be vastly more entertaining. And isn't that really what it's all about?
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